Altan

By Novalane



"But it is only 3rd place..."

---

Was it her voice, her warm, warm voice, one that made him forget about his past, that drew him to her? Or was it her beautiful wings, that shade of brilliant orange, like the color of the setting sun? Maybe it was the words that she spoke, of things he could relate to too much. Perhaps it was her eyes, beautiful chocolate brown, that reminded him of the earth, which he still stood on, alive. Those eyes that saw through his soul, that revealed who he was, and yet she still stayed. He did not know. All of those things he treasured about her, and he couldn't possibly choose which trait he loved the best.

But maybe, just maybe, it was the pain that she tried so hard to keep inside of her that allowed him to truly connect. Yes, that was probably it. It was the want to bring light to her that made him realize that when the sun sets, and when one thinks that all hope is gone, it surprise you by rising again.

It wasn't a surprise that he was not trusted, when Sunrise stumbled upon the Harmony clan. He had fled from his homeland, the Scarred Wasteland, into the Windswept Plateau with nothing but his Cursed Talonclasp Pendant — the one thing that refused to let him forget about his sins, that the dead should not be raised.

Where had he gone wrong? All he wanted was to protect his sister, bring her back to life. She was not meant to be taken away by death. Born in the Scarred Wasteland, he had grown up with the rules that only fittest survived. His sister, Sunset, he admitted was not the strongest, but he was strong. He could've, he should've protected her. How, why, did he let Sunset be a victim of the virus?

She had died. He knew she would have died. Sunset was not strong, but some part of him, some part still thought — hoped — that she could've have lived. It was that hope, that made him touch upon the darkest spells of them all.

In the end, he knew, it was clear, so very clear, that the dead should remain at peace, and he would never be able to erase the image of his sister, his kind, sweet sister, from his mind.

His deity had taken pity on the siblings, however, and struck a deal with the ruler of the dead who looked over those who fell to the grasp of the virus. He knew he would forever be grateful to the Plaguemother, who gave Sunset another chance at life, a good life. His sister now served her, and Sunset would never remember anything from that moment — thank goodness — but she would not remember him either. However, as long as she was safe, anything was alright.

He had been traveling for so long, and the pendant had became a familiar weight on his neck. He had almost forgotten—no. He would never forget, but he had almost gotten used to the feeling, and the haunting memories had been kept at bay for some time. It was one look, one look that ruined it all. One look, at the dragon, the beautiful female imperial, that resembled so much like his sister, that brought everything rushing back.

She had been laughing, smiling so happily, basking in the light of the setting sun. Fascinated by the beauty of that smile, Sunrise hadn't noticed whom she was smiling at until he gathered the strength to look away. Next to her on the rock, rested a male imperial with glittering orange wings. Diamond. That was his name. Sunrise learned it after asking a little female nocturne — who seemed to be one of the three dragons in charge of the clan.

His first impression of Yui was that she seemed was so small, at least 4 times smaller than the other two leaders, the white and blue imperials that he met before. Size was not an issue, he soon learned, and the nocturne radiated the power of a leader. He did not doubt her skills in a fight, as the scars on her obviously showed that she had faced many tough conditions.

The nocturne had answered his question reluctantly. It was not after giving an annoyed huff, though, that Sunrise received a reply.

"If you thought about listening before, then you would've already known known his name by now. You were way too busy instead, staring at Sunset. I don't even know why we should accept you in, but Telinke and Kiki say that no dragon should face his or her troubles alone, and I suppose they are right. You're definitely hiding something. "

How did she know? Was he that see-through? Or perhaps the little nocturne was more observant than she let on... Sunrise made a note to be more careful around her. But wait, she had mentioned... a name, one he thought he would never hear again.

"It's fine, I suppose we all are hiding things. No need to tell us all of your secrets. I would be a hypocrite if I forced you to spill your secrets to some strangers you've barley known."

Sunrise didn't hear the rest of her words. "Sunset... Is that the red imperial's name?"

The nocturne shot him a glare before answering. "If you had listened... - why am I even wasting my time with you?!"

She took a deep breath. "Yes, the red imperial's name is Sunset, and the dragon next to her is Diamond, and since you've probably forgotten my name as well, it's Yui. Now, let me get this straight. Sunset is a very kind dragon and if you hurt her I will make you pay. Well, there is your name. Is there anything else you need to know?"

Sunset? The dragon that resembled so much like his sister bore the same name as her? Was the world trying to play with him? Why did it choose to bring back the memories he had tried so hard to bury?

"Ah, no..." Sunrise murmured, lost in his thoughts.

"Yui, thank you for answering," he added, remembering that the nocturne was already annoyed with him.

Sunrise desperately wanted to get to know Sunset, that pretty female imperial, and he didn't want to ruin that chance, if the nocturne allowed him join her clan.

"Hmmp, at least you remembered to say thank you."

The nocturne gave him a final look over. He felt uncomfortable under her gaze, even though he was practically 6 times as big as her. The look she gave him — and her next words — made it seem like she knew something about him that he didn't himself.

"I don't like you. You remind me too much about myself, but you're admitted into the clan. Go, I'm getting sick of that look you're giving Sunset. Just go talk to her already. Maybe your tale will end up better than mine."

After saying those words, the nocturne took off to talk to her fellow leaders of the clan. Yui never gave him the chance to question what she had meant by her words, but it wasn't long till he figured out.

---

- Sunrise was the older brother of his young sister, and felt like he had to protect her from the world because they grew up with no parents.
- Sunrise lived in the Scarred Wasteland, which according to my lore, has a "survival of the fittest" policy.
- His sister was caught by the plague/sickness of the wasteland and died, and Sunrise felt responsible for her death, for not trying harder to prevent it. In reality there wasn't anything he could've done, it was only up for her to fight it.
- He wanted to bring her back to life, his sister, and found a Cursed Talonclasp Pendant that told him he could grant any wish, but not without a price.
- Things didn't go the way predicted, and he was scarred by the result. I'm not sure of the details yet, but he fled the Wasteland after that and tried to find safety in my clan.
- He's haunted by the pendant, because it refuses to let him take it off, and though it doesn't do any physical harm to him, it's a reminder of his past everyday.

And while in my clan, he found a dragon that he found a great connection to, my Sunset, who seemly resembled his sister, and their story goes from there.

(I would love if some part of this story could be portrayed in the drawing, maybe in the drawing of the orb you have in your example? If not, maybe instead of a fish there could be a talonclasp pendant?)

I haven't figured out Sunset's story, backstory wise, but I do know that she had an unrequited love for a dragon who loved another and the pair left to serve the Windsinger. Sunset, wanting to always remember them, started writing down their story and found her role as the "memory keeper" of my clan. Sunset keeps a list of names of the dragons who have been born in the clan, or joined in, and the ones that left to go off to an adventure, and keeps track of their stories so they would never be forgotten.

Overall, Sunset's personality would be thoughtful and considerate and loving, but in a way that watches from a far, such as, to do little acts of kindness for everyone without making herself known. She's the selfless type, and keeps a lot of things inside.

Sunrise has a hero complex in a way, I guess, wanting to "save" and help others, but not himself, feeling guilty and deserving of that guilt.

I hope this wasn't too long eek ;w; I write a lot.

---

Every dragon has a tale. A tale to be a told. One’s tale can be brave, tragic, loving, dejected. The tale of Sunrise is tragic. Born in the harsh and unforgiving Scarred Wasteland, a land with no laws but one. “Survival of the fittest.” Only the strong survive in the vile lands, the weak, frail and old perish under the weight of the Wasteland’s burden.

Into such a land was Sunrise born. Dragons of the Wastes do not support their offspring, merely leaving them to survive on their own, chance that they ever meet again. Sunrise was left with a baby sister, whom he loved dearly.

With all of his heart Sunrise swore to protect and save his precious sister from the grasps of their home. But the Wasteland is only for the strong, Soon a terrible sickness washed over the realm, known only as the Silver Death, a sickness that covers a victim’s limbs in a silver-like material, causing paralysis to the body. Those who caught the disease soon became frail from malnourishment, and soon the Wasteland would claim it’s due. Such was the fate of Sunrise’s sister.

For weeks and months Sunrise wept in grief, blaming himself, blaming nobody but himself. In his grief Sunrise fell into desperation, seeking something to fill the void left by his deceased sister. Stumbling across the waste one day, a faint red shone in the distance. Unearthed by Sunrise, a Cursed Talonclasp Pendant. Said to have the power to grant a dragon a wish, Sunrise leapt at the chance.

Later did Sunrise learn of the cost. Though the pendant did bring back his sister, it revived her only to the state of her death. When Sunrise saw her again, she was pale and dying, her body nearly completely covered in the silvery substance. Saddened greater than before, Sunrise ended his sister’s suffering a second time between apologies and tears.

As was the price of Sunrise’s mistake, the pendant struck a deep wound in his body, identical to the wound he had ended his sister’s suffering with. Though not fatal, the wound left a grave scar, disfiguring part of Sunrise’s body. The pendant also remained on Sunrise’s neck, unable to be removed. Either by magic or by Sunrise’s guilt, nobody knew.

After learned from his mistakes, Sunrise fled the horrid Scarred Wasteland and seeked a new life, a new start in a new place. Searching far and wide across the realm of Sornieth he found refuge in the clan of HarmonyWish (This can be changed if you want). Though safe from his childhood nightmares, Sunrise has kept his dark past a secret from his clan, refusing to allow the taint of the Scarred Wasteland to destroy his new home as it did his last.

Lore by LS299